Swords and Knives
by Kassel Garibay
Summary: This is Cato's story, since he stepped in the Careers Institute until Katniss' arrow killed him. I hope you enjoy :
1. I didn't know

Did I know? Did I know that by enrolling in the Career Institute I would end up like this? Did I know that I would end up holding my beloved's hand while she took her last breaths? Did I know that I would be responsible of her death?

No, I didn't know.

As I didn't know what her feelings for me were like they were. As I didn't know that underneath my harsh surface there was a soft, sentimental me that could cry his heart out when he saw his little girl lying lifeless on the ground. As I didn't know that the Games weren't ok, that they were barbaric and unfair…

I didn't know I was another piece in their Games.

When I entered the Career Institute I thought it was synonym to be crowned a Victor, I thought walking through that doors meant glory and my father's joy.

I couldn't be more wrong.

I knew her since we were little, my parents and hers were friends. So they often visited us in our house in the Victors Village. My father was a Victor, and I was the oldest brother. I was the role model, the son that would go in the games and win them. Just to follow the tradition. My father was so proud of me. If he only knew what he was doing to me by encouraging me into the games…

But he didn't know, no one knew. All we knew was that when I turned 18 I would volunteer and become the Victor of the 76th annual Hunger Games. So shameful that I wasn't born a year before, so I could volunteer on the Quarter Quell. But things in the Career Institute don't work like that. You don't volunteer until you are 18.

Winning the games was more than an obsession for me. It was everything to me. There wasn't a day I didn't think of becoming a Victor. My training was above my friends, the girls, and my family, above everything. Until she arrived.

In the end I did volunteered, but not at 18. At 16, everybody was confused. I was going against the rules. But Raymond didn't object. It was his turn to volunteer, he was 18 years old, and it was his last chance to win the games. But he was my friend, and he saw why I was volunteering. I looked at him and he nodded. Sadness in his eyes, but not for losing his chance of winning. But because he knew he was losing a friend.

That wasn't supposed to happen; even when her name was read the silence that followed to the call out for volunteers wasn't right. When in the story of District 2 there had been no volunteers at all? When? And why did it have to happen when it was her name the one drew from the bowl? It didn't even make sense; her name was in 5 times, how many times was Cherry's in? 40? 50?

Everybody thought I was volunteering because I was strong, vicious, and ready to go and win. Because I wanted to show everybody that I could win with only 16 years. Everybody thought that I was ready to become District 2's Victor.

And they were not very far away from the truth. I did volunteer to bring a Victor back to District 2. But the Victor I had in mind wasn't me.

I volunteered to bring Clove back home.


	2. Plans

Clove was the only person I could speak with about something that wasn't the Games. In fact, we never spoke about the Games. We used to spend hours talking about this and that, but never about the Games.

Clove was the only reason that made me sad of leaving school to enter the Career Institute. Sure, I had a bunch of friends, or "admirers" as Clove liked to call them. They were all always cheering me, it was known that I would be a Victor, just like my father. So everybody wanted to be my friend. I was very popular, but Clove was the only one I really cared about. She was very popular too, had a lot of friends and guys that asked her out… I was glad of leaving to the Institute and losing those losers of sight.

Clove and I never spoke of the Games, so I had no idea what she thought of them. It was an enormous surprise to find her in the Institute that first day. But I was Cato Shields, nothing ever surprised me. Or at least, I didn't let people know that. So I put on a smile on my face as if I was happy to see her there. But I obviously wasn't. Clove? Sweet, funny Clove entering a contest in which she had to die if I wanted to win? I didn't like that.

Because if she was there that could only mean she had the same plan that I had, that was obvious. Every single kid in the Institute had the same plane: Train, volunteer, win.

But Clove and I were the same age… if she had the same plan that I had we were both planning to kill each other.


	3. Courage

She sees me and smiles. The fake smile in my face fades and turns into a real one. A warm one.

Clove is the only one that can pull a smile out of me that isn't self-sufficient or mischievous, but one of true happiness, because even when I am not pleased that she is trying to kill me I am happy to see a known face, most importantly a smiling face. I walk to her.

"Surprised?" She asks. And I laugh.

"You know, for being so little you are filled with surprises." I answer. She laughs and is about to say something when someone enters the room and asks us to line up according to our age. Clove lines up in front of me in the 12 years-old line. The longest line of all. I count the people in the others, they are 30 in each one. In mine there are at least 70. More than half of them won't come back next week, and hopefully Clove will be in that half so I don't have to carry her death over my shoulders.

They lead us to the auditorium and Clove sits on my left. On my right there is another kid we both know from school. We three are talking when I notice there is someone on the stage. A man. Probably 40 years old, but still strong and terrifying. Scars in his arms that he refused to let the Capitol to take away. Scars that were like trophies from his Games.

When we were all sit down in the room he speaks. Just one word and his voice echoed across the auditorium, even when he carried no microphone. His voice was deep and powerful, and more than one shivered. Not me though.

Everybody stopped talking and we all turned to see him. Just one word had came out from his lips and he had all out attention.

"Courage."

He smiles and his smile is filled with pride, not happiness. Like mine. I smile too.

"It takes a lot of things to be a Victor." He continues. "But the most important is courage. Yes, you have to be smart, quick, strong, decided, skilled and that kind of things. But if you lack courage, you are dead. If you lack courage, anything else that you have is useless. Courage will guide you every step of the way. And today you took the first step. You are all here. You all think you've got what it takes to be a Victor. You had the courage to try, even when you know you can fail."

I can't fail.

"You all have the courage to believe in yourselves, the courage to believe there is a Victor in you. And the rest of your tutors and I will help you to find that Victor that is hidden inside you."

There is a Victor inside me.

"So welcome to the new ones, to the rest of you welcome again, and to the oldest of you welcome for the last time. I will see you around. _Careers_." The way he says the word makes us all shiver, the way he says it makes it a synonym of honor and pride.

We all clap and he disappears behind some doors with the District 2 seal. The doors close and we lose Brutus from sight. Brutus disappears.

Brutus.

Our mentor.

Our Victor.

My father.


End file.
